Tribe.net. Local Connections ENIAD http://ethicalconsumerism.tribe.net/thread/8318ce23-339e-4e40-8392-26c80df6b97a#a8c15539-29eb-458e-92dd-3dd798928f6d 2009-05-12T18:20:14Z 2009-05-12T18:20:14Z

I have been wanting to add here on the cost of moving food against great distances but could not find the articles. I will then simply summarize it. There is also ecological costs of moving food against great distances. It is horrendous the distances that our food must travel through to land in our plate and often to die in our fridge the next days if it does not make it to the plate promptly. I mostly buy organic local produce and surprisingly, should I not use it immediately, it lasts for week in the fridge. Organic and fair trade products are also becoming mainstream and sometimes cost the same as the non -organic products. I picked up lemon juice that way yesterday. All these add up to the hidden and apparent cost of feeding ourselves but the platter is tilting more and more of organic and local organic when possible.

ENIAD 2009-05-12T18:20:14Z ENIAD http://ethicalconsumerism.tribe.net/thread/8318ce23-339e-4e40-8392-26c80df6b97a#e096a1ca-5526-40a6-adb4-2d2121fe7d5c 2009-03-23T13:33:52Z 2009-03-23T13:33:52Z

Worst case scenario (If the food is unhealthy): What money you are not putting on healthy food, you will be putting later in medicine and days off work due to ill-health. The junky mainstream medicine from the pharmaceutical cartels you will be prescribed will further unbalance your body and you will end up a walking health pharmaceutical health projects wrecks like we see so many older and not so older people. There are medical books the size of bibles giving the side-effects of secondary drugs drugs that are prescribed to stop the effects from the primary drugs. Everything is linked to everything else and this is not the way it should be with a little awareness. Thanks for bringing this topic up. I will return with the ecological cost of food that travel far distances to land in our plates and the tampering that they undergo and that impact our health.

ENIAD 2009-03-23T13:33:52Z seal http://ethicalconsumerism.tribe.net/thread/8318ce23-339e-4e40-8392-26c80df6b97a#7497efa2-4769-4847-9eda-dba5284cabe5 2009-03-23T06:25:31Z 2009-03-23T06:25:31Z

Pet food, all sorts of stuff and it's not just the closeout stores carrying all this China-made crap. Regular stores do, too. Down south in Spokane there's Liquidation World, Grocery Outlet, Winco Foods, Spokane Discount, and reading the labels gets depressing because a majority is coming from out of country. It's really not all that good from Mexico or Honduras, either! By the way, all Vitamin C tabs are now made overseas. I read that the last factory here closed up and went to China a couple years ago...

seal 2009-03-23T06:25:31Z Jill http://ethicalconsumerism.tribe.net/thread/8318ce23-339e-4e40-8392-26c80df6b97a#a9610687-059d-4aff-845a-65b3bc5ac2ef 2009-03-06T19:50:40Z 2009-03-06T19:50:40Z

the pet food at those stores often comes from China - I wouldn't feed it to my animals.

Jill 2009-03-06T19:50:40Z Will http://ethicalconsumerism.tribe.net/thread/8318ce23-339e-4e40-8392-26c80df6b97a#fdcb37c4-354d-4019-aabb-39804ccca5b2 2009-03-03T16:26:33Z 2009-03-03T16:26:33Z

Yes, be very careful reading labels. One friend I went with bought some off-brand canned veggies that looked suspicious to me and when she got home did not like them and was surprised she hadn't noticed they came from overseas. She almost bought some personal care products (tooth paste, shampoo) but hesitated when I pointe out their point of origin. She also bought some oven cleaner that looked similar to the brand she usually gets but it didn't work well at all. Caveat emptor!

Will 2009-03-03T16:26:33Z HunnyDu http://ethicalconsumerism.tribe.net/thread/8318ce23-339e-4e40-8392-26c80df6b97a#2ef4fa0d-0b25-4685-886e-53dd33e5bbc8 2009-03-03T07:07:22Z 2009-03-03T07:07:22Z

well, its unethical to waste food no matter how much it costs. I understand a need to pinch pennies, and no one should begrudge you to patronize a store like that if that is all you can afford. You gotta eat. But eat it right away, so that your patronage of a less-than-ethical company for necessities sake wont be in vain.

HunnyDu 2009-03-03T07:07:22Z Lynn http://ethicalconsumerism.tribe.net/thread/8318ce23-339e-4e40-8392-26c80df6b97a#25f3b91e-2234-4338-8315-e9baed68fb3e 2009-03-03T02:58:57Z 2009-03-03T02:58:57Z

It depends on what you'd like to support I suppose. I like 99 cent stores, but I have no idea where their items come from. I also, though, like stores that resell damaged or unsaleable items - they are cheap, and to me an example of recycling and supporting small-business. Not sure if the original brands get the dollar on it or not, or how all that works. This is an interesting question. I have bought food from these reject stores, and they are typically near-expired or sometimes already expired, and have eaten them. I don't think I would personally by food from these 99 cent stores, but I sadly do for my pets b/c, well, it's cheap. I'm not sure I'm answering your question, but I am reposing it as a couple of more specific questions. The term 'ethical consumerism' to me means buying what you can feel good about. What makes you feel good or contributing positively in your purchases? (re-question 1) (re-question 2) where do these stores get their stuff from? I looked on their website http://www.99only.com/ to see if I could find anything. Looks like they ARE a closeout store, but on a bigger scale. I do not understand how they run, nor who gets the finances, or where they get their products/who chooses. I cannot find anything on their website. If others are interested, though, I'd be more than happy to contact them and dig deeper to find some answers (though I'm sure someone has looked at these guys already). I do this exact sort of thing for my job regularly. Great question!

Lynn 2009-03-03T02:58:57Z Christie http://ethicalconsumerism.tribe.net/thread/8318ce23-339e-4e40-8392-26c80df6b97a#e9aa3d35-b406-41f5-8d15-f9d7ae93d53e 2009-02-28T03:06:41Z 2009-02-28T03:06:41Z

What do you all think of buying food from 99 cents stores? $1.00 stores in some areas? My boyfriend has started to shop there for us lately, because we need to be somewhat penny pinching lately with his income waning. I'm getting around to making dinner right now, and it occurred to me that some of the food he bought earlier in the week (fresh produce) is already going bad, and therefore a waist of 99 cents. Is buying food that's about to go to waste from a 99 cent store an ethical thing, if you do end up eating it?

Christie 2009-02-28T03:06:41Z